


desperate measures

by orphan_account



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Angst, Gender Dysphoria, Short, Suicidal Thoughts, Trans Male Character, Trans Trunks, kind of happy ending? ish???, vegeta being a decent father kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-12
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2019-03-17 03:56:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13650921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Trunks knew it was desperate measures when he had to vent to Vegeta of all people.





	desperate measures

**Author's Note:**

> this is? angst with a kind of happy ending i think? i don't really know. i was having a pretty rough day and my gender dysphoria was getting the better of me so i wrote this to vent out some feelings 
> 
> in case you missed the tags, please be warned that there's mentions of suicidal thoughts/ideation in this. please be safe and don't read this if you think that content could be harmful to you 
> 
> i'm assuming that this isn't offensive bc it's all based on my own experience as a trans person, but if anything i wrote comes off as harmful, let me know so i can fix it 
> 
> this isn't proofread, and this was also written pretty late at night and in a short period of time, so i apologize in advance for any errors

"Dad... can I talk to you?" Trunks knew it was desperate measures when he had to vent to Vegeta of all people. But Trunks had run out of any other options; Bulma was hanging out with Goku for the evening, Bulla was only nine and venting to a child only got you so far, and speaking to his grandparents was too awkward. 

Trunks was holding back tears at this point, and he knew Vegeta was going to be harsh about it, but he didn't care anymore. He needed to tell someone or else he was going to have a total meltdown and do something stupid. 

Vegeta glanced up from the paper he was reading. He stared at Trunks long and hard, and Trunks felt his heart flutter with anxiety. Maybe this was a bad idea. 

"What's the matter with you, kid?" Not ideal, but better than the reaction Trunks had been expecting. 

"Well, I... I don't really know where to start," Trunks admitted, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. A tear finally escaped his eye, and he hastily wiped it away. Vegeta rolled his eyes, but didn't make any comments.

"Sit down." Trunks obliged, taking a seat next to his father on the couch. Trunks took a deep breath.

"I... I haven't been doing so great lately," he started shakily. "I think... I... I don't really know how to put it all into words, I'm sorry, I just..."

"Spit it out already."

"Yeah, yeah, sorry." Trunks let out a frustrated sigh as he tried to think of the right words to say. "My dysphoria has been... worse than usual. It's... it's gotten to the point where I can't even look in a mirror without wanting to tear myself apart. I... Yesterday, I had a total breakdown over it and it's so stupid, but I just... I can't shake the feeling that I'm gross or too girly and I just... It's killing me. I can hardly get out of bed in the morning at this point, and... it's gotten so bad that at this point I... I think I want nothing more than to just off myself here and now, and that thought terrifies and... and... I don't know how to handle all of this. I'm scared. It hurts." 

The words poured out in a stammered, rambling mess. Trunks was hesitant to say it all, but it felt better to not have it all locked inside now. 

Trunks avoided eye contact with his father, instead opting to stare at random objects in the room. The flowers on the coffee table seemed nicer to look at than the most likely negative reaction displayed on Vegeta's face. 

"Kid, look at me." Trunks reluctantly obliged, biting his lower lip to keep it from trembling. Tears were welling in his eyes and it was becoming increasingly more difficult to blink them away. "If you ever, ever try to hurt yourself I swear to every god in this universe that I will make you suffer. I'm not losing my only son so soon, you got that?"

Trunks could only nod. He didn't trust his voice at the moment. Vegeta didn't wait for a reply, and continued with, "Look... I'm not good at talking and being sympathetic. But I am good at listening. If you need to rant or something, I'm here. Just... If you ever feel like you're in danger of hurting yourself, come to me or your mother, alright? I know I act like I don't care, but I don't like seeing you like this."

That was the final straw. Trunks couldn't hold back his tears now, and he let out an embarrassingly loud sob. He practically jumped onto Vegeta in a tight hug, crying into his father's chest. Trunks desperately clung to the fabric of Vegeta's shirt as he sobbed helplessly. 

Vegeta stiffened, not knowing what to do in this situation. After a moment, he relaxed a bit and wrapped his arm around his son, holding him close. He used his free hand to run his fingers through Trunks' hair, hoping the action was at least somewhat comforting. 

Trunks, exhausted from his breakdown, fell asleep in Vegeta's lap minutes later. Vegeta was unsure of what to do, so he simply sat still and let his son rest. And if Bulma walked in to find Vegeta and Trunks snuggled up on the couch, both fast asleep, she never mentioned it the next morning.


End file.
